Art Nouveau Gold Scratch Art

The 7th grade class ends the year with a Scratch Art Unit. In this unit the students explore Art Nouveau in the style of Gustav Klimt, create DIY Scratch Art Paper to create a Keep Calm Parody Poster and complete their final Legacy Portrait that is diplayed in the front of our room for the upcoming school year.

Here are some stellar examples of the Gold Scratch Board in the style of Klimt. the scratching this year has been enhanced by new tools we acquired through a grant from NAEF!

Zentangle Watercolor Animals- Pen and Ink Unit

Ending the year with a Pen and Ink Unit is FABULOUS! Students are engaged with complex projects that require SIMPLE tools and minimal cleanup- the best part! The Zentangle Watercolor Animal is a project gleaned from Art at Becker and I am SO thrilled with the outcomes. Students took these home as soon as I passed them back!

Pillow Pride

It's so satisfying as a teacher to witness the trials and tribulations of a project's process leading to the final outcome- Student Pride! The Pillow Project is a culmination of several hand-sewing mini projects teaching basic techniques that led students to become independent with their sewing. After embroidering their name on card stock students transitioned to working with small scrap fabric to sew a pin cushion and bookmark. They even sewed scented satchels for the PE Locker-HA!

For the Pillow Project the students selected fabric along with matching zipper and thread. Using the backstitch, students hand sewed their pillow which included embedding a zipper so that their pillow could be zipped open and shut in order to be stuffed!

Though there were a lot of poked fingers, broken needles, and ripped seams- students persevered. I believe students will keep this Pillow Project and memories of the Sewing Unit for a long time!

Chess Legacy Project in Action!

Today marks the culmination of the 8th Grade class Legacy Project.  This is the second year Expressions students created a Legacy Project.  The Legacy Project is a collaborative art installment created by the 8th grade promoting class as a way to leave a lasting mark on their Leading Edge years.

The life-sized Chess pieces that students formed with chicken wire, applied paper mache' layer and painted are finally ready for game play!  Students learned to play the game of chess in 6th grade with Ms. Meindl, so it seems fitting that the life size chess board has been permanently installed on the ground next to her classroom, at the end of the LE hallway.  After the great collaborative effort and critical thinking involved to created these pieces, it only seems fair to let students be the first to put their hard work to use!  Game on!

Mâché madness!

I am always amazed by the critical thinking skills students employ when we present them with challenging tasks and set them loose.  Today in Expressions, our task was to paper mâché the chicken wire chess forms students have been working on the past few days.  Because these chess pieces will be used outdoors on our new permanent installment chess board at the end of the Leading Edge hallway, we want the 18" tall game pieces to be sturdy for real life play!  A mâché recipe of flour and water was determined sturdier than the more commonly used recipe of water and glue.

As students entered class today, they were handed a mixing tin of 2 cups of flour to bring to their table.  "Mrs. Shane, are we baking in class today?"  I poured water in their mixture and told them to get it to the consistency of watery pancake batter...no lumps!  Offering spoons to mix or hand mixers set up along the back counter, students decided it would be more fun to mix with their hands.  I can't think of a better tool than hands!

We faced a few challenges as we began to apply the mâché...most common issues is what I like to call "bobble head syndrome."  Several of the pieces that had areas that were pinched in decided they didn't like the weight of the Mâché and so the wobbling began.  Students came up with several solutions to combat this problem, ranging from stuffing the interior with more chicken wire for support, to positioning wooden dowels just right to keep the forms upright.

We also had the issue of super messy hands and sweatshirt sleeves kept falling, so we decided to designate a student (who also happened to dislike the feel of the mâché mix on his hands) to be sleeve  puller-upper and phone picture taker.  LOVE when students are so into projects they want to capture themselves in action!

8th Grade Legacy Project: Life Size Chess Board Pieces

A Legacy Project is a collaborative art installment created by the oldest class on campus and gifted to the school at the end of the year. A Legacy project is student centered and can help maintain student connections to their school long after their gone. Students have an opportunity to demonstrate their leadership skills through their collaborative efforts that over time create a colorful and inviting place for others to enjoy. The amount of time and effort put into a Legacy Project reflects student investment in their school that sets an example for their younger peers and leaves a lasting visual mark!

This year the class of 2015 is collaborating on life-sized Chess Pieces that can be played on the Life-Sized Chess board created by PFAA Senior, Christopher Skinner. Why Chess? Chess is an integral part of the 6th grade culture. Students learn about the origin of Chess, learn to play the game and continue playing long after 6th grade in Chess Club. Chess is a "Thinker's Game" that is played globally so the ability to cultivate a culture of students that have the skills necessary to play the game is something to continue to promote and celebrate!

The Chess Board and pieces will help to keep the game vital within the LEA Program as it will not only serve as a public piece of art but will serve as a gathering place for NCS students and faculty. Each individual piece will be hand crafted and signed by a group of students for others to play and admire. Our goal is to have the Chess pieces finish and board operable by Open house! Pictures below highlight our progress so far.

Chris providing tips of forming chess pieces.

Lots of critical thinking and problem solving went into forming chess pieces!

Students sharing ideas and demonstrating how they formed their chess piece.

Student Chess Piece example